With how the first two nights of the Play-In Tournament played out, we need this day off to get ready for Friday night’s action just as much as the teams do. As for those teams, the first two in action are looking for the final playoff seed in the Eastern Conference, so we’re here to share our best Hornets vs. Magic predictions for Friday.

Even if you’re in Florida (and over 40 states), you’ll also be able to lock in your Hornets vs. Magic picks after claiming today’s GUARANTEED 10x Novig Sportsbook promo code bonus!

🤔 Hornets vs. Magic Predictions for NBA Play-In Tournament, 4/17

The Hornets also had the very first Play-In Tournament game of 2026, and it was an overtime thriller. They needed every bit of it to eliminate the Miami Heat, so they’re looking to take down the other Florida team trying to stay alive. Of course, Hornets vs. Magic predictions and NBA expert picks aren’t the only topic at hand.

There was speculation that LaMelo Ball may get suspended for his trip of Bam Adebayo, but that will NOT be the case. Bam got injured on that play, and in Orlando, it’s clear that Franz Wagner is still not 100% healthy. That said, he did perform well in his lone game against Charlotte this season.

Even still, the road team is favored here, and we’d agree with that assessment. In fact, with that in mind, that perfectly transitions us to the best bet from our Hornets vs. Magic predictions.

🔥 Hornets vs. Magic Best Bet: Charlotte Team Total Over 110.5 (-117 at Novig)

We’re not going to outright go with Charlotte covering the spread, but that also wouldn’t be our least favorite pick. We also like Ball and company to be leading at halftime, but ultimately, the focus of our Hornets vs. Magic predictions are going to be on their team total. After all, we cashed it on Tuesday night!

We gave it out at 115.5 before ballooning to 118.5, and this is one that we wanted to get to you ASAP as well, as we expect it to increase again. This number is still just fine by us, as Charlotte averaged over 120 per game against Orlando this season, including 130 the last time that we made Hornets vs. Magic predictions.

That’s also with the outlier of a 107-game, which was way back on October 30. In other words, we put more value in the three recent matchups compared to that one. Even the Boston Celtics playing absolutely no one in the season finale scored 113 on Orlando, and they just simply haven’t been great since mid-March.

Let’s make it back-to-back winners on the same market with this team by taking the Charlotte team total over 110.5 (-117 at Novig) as the best bet from our Hornets vs. Magic predictions.
 

 

 

👀 How To Watch Hornets vs. Magic NBA Play-In Tournament

With this matchup tipping off our weekend, don’t miss a second of it and check out how to watch the Hornets vs. Magic NBA Play-In Tournament game:

  • Where: Kia Center in Orlando, FL
  • When: 7:30 PM ET on 4/17
  • Where to stream: Prime Video exclusively

🔢 Hornets vs. Magic Odds, Spreads, Total & Betting Lines

So that you can pair our best bet with some our picks, here are the latest Hornets vs. Magic odds for Friday at Novig Sportsbook:

 

 

✍🏼 Hornets vs. Magic Injury Report & Latest News

We mentioned Franz Wagner, so we’ll start with Orlando in terms of Hornets vs. Magic injuries. He’s back on the court as we’ve seen, but is still being limited, and Jonathan Isaac is out. As for Hornets vs. Magic injuries in Charlotte, they are only without PJ Hall.

Those last two names are both bench players, so they aren’t ones that we feel would affect our best bet. However, it’s still worth going beyond just Hornets vs. Magic news by bookmarking our Fantasy Alarm NBA injury report!

💲 How To Make Hornets vs. Magic Picks at Novig Sportsbook & Claim Your $50 Bonus w/ Promo Code ALARM

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